Critics as varied as a former Manitoba premier and last year’s Miss Canada spoke out at city hall Monday night to help convince the politicians to soften Windsor’s proposed municipal trespass policy.

“This is a significant improvement … I appreciate the thoughts and effort that went into this,” Howard Pawley said after council agreed to most of the recommendations made by the Canadian Civil Liberties Association in deciding when and how to ban someone from city property. Pawley, a former premier and attorney general of Manitoba, is a Windsor resident and a vice-president with the CCLA.

Miss Canada 2012 Jaclyn Miles said that as a survivor of abuse she understood the city’s need for an effective policy to protect employees and ensure safety in the workplace. But the original trespass policy as proposed by Windsor legal staff “violates our rights as Canadian citizens,” the current human rights activist added.

The new policy, triggered by complaints of heavy-handedness on the part of city supervisors, requires an explanation be given on the alleged infractions when someone is slapped with a notice of no trespass. It also provides an appeal avenue and sets shorter time limits for any ban.

Asked whether there had been any former abuse, city solicitor George Wilkki explained that’s why the written policy was formulated. Several of the delegations who spoke out before council had been given notices of trespass in the past, including Darren Parro, who required special permission in order to attend city hall Monday night.

“On behalf of the corporation, I apologize,” Mayor Eddie Francis told Robert Mittag, who was banned from municipal property last summer while outside city hall protesting the presence of Ward 10 Coun. Al Maghnieh in the aftermath of the library credit card scandal.

“I’m much happier — this is an accomplishment,” Mittag told The Star after council’s unanimous vote. Mittag, who is calling for disciplinary action against the city supervisor who made the “false allegations” against him, said he was looking forward to a more detailed explanation of his alleged wrongdoing, as well as a formal revocation of his ban.

The mild-spoken Mittag said he never blocked access to anyone at city hall, he was never violent, never uttered any threats and “expressed no profanity” during his political protests.

Both Mittag and Parro complained of harassment by police following the serving of their trespass notices, to which both police board chairman Francis and board member Ward 6 Coun. Jo-Anne Gignac said there were local and provincial avenues to pursue those allegations, if true.

Windsor lawyer Victoria Cross, who represented Mittag last year and who worked with city staff on amendments to earlier drafts of the proposed policy, said many of those who lose their temper while dealing with social services or other government staff tend to be under high stress, living in poverty and in “dire need of help.”

She complained the new policy, even amended, still failed to specifically address what is acceptable and what is unacceptable behaviour that could lead to a ban.

Patrick Brode, a city lawyer who worked on drafting the new policy, said it would be “rather difficult to give specifics” in a policy designed to protect staff and members of the public in instances where a trespass notice might be needed. He said it can run the gamut from violence and threats to “using porn in a family recreation centre.”

To a question from Ward 2 Coun. Ron Jones, Brode said that, under the Ontario Health and Safety Act, the municipality faces fines of up to a half-million dollars if it fails to properly protect its employees.

“We’re trying to craft something that protects staff and the public without overreaching,” said Francis. He said one of those currently on the city’s active list of banned individuals was a woman included on a Windsor police most-wanted list released last week.

Brode said the legal department was concerned that, until now, individuals ordered in writing not to trespass on city property were not given any specific reasons why they were being banned.

Darren Parro, who is currently banned from Windsor city properties obtained special permission to speak at Monday’s council meeting regarding the notice of trespass policy on May 27, 2013. (JASON KRYK/The Windsor Star)

Windsor city councillor Al Maghnieh, left listens to Robert Mittag speak during Monday’s council meeting regarding the notice of trespass policy on May 27, 2013. Mittag was briefly banned from city properites while protesting issues with Al Maghnieh last summer. (JASON KRYK/The Windsor Star)

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